by Adam Myhr
A goblin mage cast Spirit Hammer on you! -8 HP
A goblin mage defeated you!
Frank: Average Human
Defeated by a goblin mage’s spirit hammer on turn 1226.
Str:7
Dex:7
Con:6
Int:6
Wis:5
Luck:6
HP:0 (22)
SP:0 (0)
Food:100% (28/60)
Turn:1226
Exp:186
Lvl:2
Weapon:
Rusty Machete
Normal, 2-5
Armor:
Dirty Farmer’s Overalls
0
Minor Cursed Ring of Cracked Stone
Equipment:
.5 dried fish, flint & steel, 2 torches, 1 torch (152), kindling, dull old rusty ax, old iron dagger
Silver: 22
Skills:
Ax Wielding (1)
Dodge (1)
Firestarter (1)
Fishing (1)
Medicine (1)
Short Blades (2) +1 Dam
Stealth (1)
Magic:
I was still trying to scream when I came to. Blackness surrounded me. I felt pain as an afterimage of what happened to my body, slowly fading as I floated. There was no HUD, no light of any kind. I tried to speak, but nothing happened. I was trapped with my thoughts and body, but the body was fading. When the pain faded, all feeling went with it.
I was back. Not strapped to a bed in a room, but in limbo, just like waiting to start the simulation. I don’t know how long passed before the feeling of unease came back, followed by being unsettled. My body regained feeling. I only knew this because I started to feel pulling, but not in what I felt should be down. Not at first.
My body felt hot, then cold. Strangely, I didn’t shiver. I couldn’t shiver. I was cold, but I couldn’t fully feel myself. I tried wiggling, and the pull started to feel more like down.
A warmth came over me, starting in my head and spreading, waking up my body as it went. I felt ground beneath my feet. I felt rough clothing on my body. The world started to brighten, shapes coming out of the dark, colors taking their place upon the shapes.
I took a breath, feeling warm, wet air like on the shores of a distant tropical beach. In the upper left corner of my vision I saw the number 10 appear, a zero immediately after it but separated by a slash, in the upper right a 0 was followed by a 100%. The HUD was back, but it couldn’t be right. I opened the character sheet in a panic.
Frank: Average Human
Str:5
Dex:5
Con:5
Int:5
Wis:5
Luck:5
HP:10 (10)
SP:0 (0)
Food:100% (0)
Turn:0
Exp:0
Lvl:0
Weapon:
Fists
Fast, 1-3
Armor:
Rags
0
Equipment:
Silver: 0
Skills:
Magic:
I tried the help menu, still getting no results. “Get me the hell out of here.” Still nothing. Closing out of the interface I looked around, surprised at not seeing the farmhouse. I didn’t see any house at all.
I was on a beach. A breeze came at me from the left, playing over the ocean waves. In front of me, the beach went on to the horizon. To my right was a jungle, a single path into the trees visible. Behind me I saw a faint path in the beach following the water, curving inland a few hundred feet away. There was smoke curling up from somewhere in the jungle.
I stood there, listening to the surf for a while. I tried heading up the beach, away from the curve. I found myself tripping on rocks and sticks hidden in the sand until my feet landed on them. Picking myself up from the sand I shook my head. It was the same as the farmhouse, the same type of area. I headed into the forest, hoping to find the source of the smoke.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
After wandering for just a handful of turns, I felt pain as something hit my shoulder.
A giant spider bit you! -2 HP
A spider, the size of a chicken, crouched just behind me, fresh blood from my shoulder on its fangs. I turned and kicked, imagining it as a football with legs instead of a spider ready to bite me back.
You kicked a giant spider! 2 Damage
It recovered from the kick immediately, pouncing on my calf as I regained my balance.
A giant spider bit you! -1 HP
I smacked my fist down on its back as hard as I could, trying to knock it off.
You hit a giant spider! 3 Damage
You defeated a giant spider! +3 Exp
I looked around the forest some more, searching for any friends the spider may have brought along. Not finding any I continued forward, more carefully this time.
Around the next corner, the path came to a T with a sign posted at the junction.
System still down. Find books for further instruction.
Below the text was an arrow pointing to the right. I tried to find the spiral of smoke in the sky, but the jungle canopy made it impossible. Maybe there was a way to get the system working from inside, and that’s why they wanted me to find the books? Maybe they just wanted to test the book interface? In either case, at least looking for books gave me something to do. While the jungle was amazing, sporting more sights, smells, and sounds than the forest had, the lack of a farmhouse type location meant there was nothing to do yet, and nowhere to get things unless I’d missed a beach house just around the bend back by the ocean.
I took the trail to the right and soon came to a clearing of sorts. The underbrush faded back, leaving a space filled with tree trunks and the bare jungle floor. As I wandered among the tree trunks, I came to one with a stairway carved into it. My eyes followed the graceful curve of the steps to an apparent treetop village. Rope bridges connected all the trees in the clearing. Some of the trees had large buildings circling the trunks, others just a walkway. Remembering the farmstead, I ran up the steps as fast as I could.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
I emerged into a storehouse. Looking around I found it contained dried fruits and meats. There wasn’t much left, but I made use of what there was.
+5 % Food
You have learned the effect of dried venison. +1 Exp
+4 % Food
You have learned the effect of dried fruit. +1 Exp
After eating my fill, I pocketed a few pieces of the dried meat, glad I would be able to keep from going hungry. With nothing more to pique my interest, I moved on.
Stepping out onto the walkway I saw the whole village was essentially a circle with six buildings and a couple of connecting trees. Despite being up in the trees, the buildings weren’t all the same height. The storehouse I stood on was the lowest with steep bridges up to two buildings on either side. Those two were the highest of the bunch. The other three seemed to be somewhere in the middle, and all interconnected.
I started the climb up to the building on the left. The interior was empty, like a college dorm in the summer. Someone used to sleep here, but the layer of dust suggested it had been abandoned for a long time. I went out the other side to check on what appeared to be the three main buildings.
The first one I came to was apparently some kind of gathering room. There was seating all along the wall and a small stone pit in the middle. The windows and door had shutters that clung tightly to them when closed. The second room had two small rows of seating facing the middle of the room. There were strange symbols on all the walls and a skylight over the middle space.
The final room I visited was another storeroom. There was no food in this one. What I did find was a collection of basic household goods and clothing. Searching through my choices, I found a matching cotton shirt and pants combo.
Tree Folk Basic Outfit
This comfortable clothing hugs tightly to yo
ur frame, making it easier to climb trees than loose clothing would. Functional and fashionable? No, not fashionable. +1 Exp
I quickly changed out of my rags. I was about to head out when something brown caught my eye. It was wedged behind a cabinet and took some effort to get out.
You lucky dog! +1 Luck
Leather Vest
Hard but supple. Before cows became a controlled species, their hides were used to make jackets almost as tough and pliable as this. They could save a person’s skin in a motorcycle crash. This can save your skin in a sword crash. Armor 2 +2 Exp
The vest was surprisingly comfortable, hardly affecting my movement at all. I looked around one more time in case I’d missed anything else before heading back out. While I was up higher, I looked for the curl of smoke again. It looked to be ahead and to the right compared to the way I came into the village.
I stopped in the other high room on my way back to the storeroom and found it just as bare as the first one. With nothing else to do up here, I grabbed a final snack from the storeroom on my way back to the ground.
Frank: Average Human
Str:5
Dex:5
Con:5
Int:5
Wis:5
Luck:6
HP:10 (10)
SP:0 (0)
Food:100% (48/50)
Turn:75
Exp:9
Lvl:0
Weapon:
Fists
Fast, 1-3
Armor:
Tree Folk Basic Outfit
0
Leather Vest
2
Equipment:
3 pieces dried venison
Silver: 0
Skills:
Magic:
Twelve
There were three ways out of the village, the way I came in, straight across, or off to the left. With the smoke still my main goal, straight out seemed the best option. I pressed on, watching the canopy for spiders as I went.
I smelled the smoke before I came to it. It started as a hint in the air, but by the time I came close to the clearing, I couldn’t smell anything but burning wood and leaves. I crept up to the clearing to see what was going on.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
A bonfire two stories tall raged in the middle of the clearing. The heat was so intense I was getting warm from over thirty feet away. Tree stumps littered the clearing, suggesting what fueled the fire. A single person tended the fire, continually tossing things into it from various piles of junk around the clearing.
I stepped out from my hiding spot and approached the worker. She was covered in sweat, her clothes clinging to her body. She ignored my approach, constantly moving between the piles and the fire, tossing in item after item. I tried calling out to her, but she either didn’t hear or didn’t care. I even tried to step in her way, but she just went around, continuing her task.
I turned my attention from her to the piles of stuff. They appeared to be from a village like the one I’d just left. Most of what remained was structure, ropes, and wood from the buildings that must have spanned overhead in the recent past.
Wooden Club
Picture a really hard, thick, stick. Now picture it bashing your skull in. Normal, Damage 3-5 Exp + 1
I shouldn’t have been disappointed, but I’d had an ax and a machete last time, both more powerful than this hunk of wood. On the other hand, it was better than nothing. Finding nothing else of interest I tried to get the worker’s attention once more. When, as expected, it failed, I moved on.
I kept watching the canopy for spiders as I went. I watched so intently that I stumbled on a branch in the path. As I caught my balance, the branch turned and struck, biting my leg.
A giant snake bit you! -1 HP
I swung the club down, trying to knock it back at the same time I struck it.
You clubbed a giant snake! 4 Damage
The club slid off the snake, barely moving it. It looked up and lunged at my now close arm in retaliation.
A giant snake bit you! -2 HP
I smacked it across the face with the club, backhand like I was swinging a tennis racket.
You clubbed a giant snake! 3 Damage
The snake was obviously not doing well after this hit. It wavered and tried to strike again, this time missing and landing on the ground next to me. I stomped down hard on its head.
You stomped a giant snake! 2 Damage
You defeated a giant snake! +7 Exp
I felt a little bad about leaving the snake’s carcass sitting there in the middle of the path. I’d heard they taste like chicken, and food was obviously important in this world. Unfortunately, I had no way to cook the thing. I pressed on, wondering where in a jungle one might find books.
I tried leaving the path once or twice, each time finding the underbrush too thick to push through. I wondered what was so special about the area that I couldn’t have the freedom to wander around as I wanted. As I pondered this, I came to yet another clearing. This one was big, and almost completely filled by a huge stone temple.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
Moss and jungle vines covered the temple’s facade. The wide steps were framed by round columns reaching 50 feet high to support the ceiling of a grand entrance. The temple rose beyond the entrance, extending high above the forest canopy.
I slowly climbed the steps towards the wide entrance at the top. The light around me dimmed as the temple blotted out the daylight filtering through the jungle. The steps deposited me in a dimly lit courtyard surrounding a central tower. All around the tower were steps leading back down to the forest. The sound of my steps was muted, lost in the moss-covered stone surrounding me.
Around the base of the tower, all the walls except one were bare. In the middle of that wall, a small wooden door was inset. I paused in the doorway before gently pushing on the door. It opened with surprising ease, revealing a well-lit passageway into the temple. The door swung shut when I stepped through.
Once inside the complete lack of moss and vines was a stark contrast to the green exterior. No longer worn and overgrown, the marble walls of the interior had a mirror finish. The floor was covered with fresh wood chips providing a pleasant aroma while walking down the hall. The ceiling glowed a soft white, proving plenty of illumination.
The hallway soon opened to a small room. On one side of the room, a stairway ascended to the floors above. On the other side of the room, a stairway led below to unknown depths. When I approached the stairwell going up the world froze, a prompt asking if wanted to leave the area appearing. Selecting no I went to the downward steps, getting the same results. It seemed the only way to stay in the same area was returning to the jungle.
The thought of returning to the jungle only to be guided along a path, unable to deviate, didn’t sit well with me. I had armor, I had a weapon, and I had food. I had a way to go before level 1, but I knew more now. I understood some of how the game worked. I looked at my options. Fearing what might happen were I to go underground without a light I headed for the stairs up and pressed on.
At the top of the steps I was confronted with a plain door, easily pushed open. I stepped through and heard a click when it closed itself behind me. Turning to check I saw no door. I was in a dead-end hallway with no discernible way to go back where I came from.
I came to a T intersection just a short way down the hall. The wall in front of me had symbols resembling shirts, socks, ties, hats, underwear, and shoes. They were the first symbols I’d seen on the walls of the temple. They didn’t repeat, only appearing on the wall right here at the junction. To my left, the hall ended at a door. To the right, it made a left turn. I passed a turn, listening for any clues as to the safer route. The silence was so absolute I could hear my own heartbeat.
Trying to shake the feeling of unease growing inside of me I went to the door, examining it before deciding if I would go in or not. I didn’t find anything that seemed out of place, so I
slowly pushed the door open. My eye was drawn to a dais in the middle of the room. The square platform was topped by a jet-black rock. The rock was guarded by a tiny person, about the size of an imp. While its nose was regularly sized, the person’s ears were disproportionately large. The pointed ears swept up from its head gracefully. The top half of the ears swiveled and twitched like a nervous deer’s, always moving. As the door softly bumped to a stop, they swiveled towards me. Even locked in my direction the ears quivered, as if unable to truly stay still.
The little person wore armor similar in style to the leather vest I had on. At its side was a small sword, really a dagger by my standards. It was next to the rock with its back to me, apparently guarding it from something. I wouldn’t reach it this turn, so I looked for a good place to take it on.
The room itself was round. A small bench, sized for more of these little people, ringed the room. More symbols were ringing the room, though I couldn’t make them out very well without examining them and I didn’t want to give the little person a free turn. The rest of the room appeared featureless, nothing else on the floor and nothing hanging from the ceiling. I decided to circle the rock away from the person, hoping it would close part of the distance and give me the first attack.
It jumped at me. Fast. While it reminded me of the imps, it was significantly faster than they had been. I was far enough away I had time to react and dodge the attack, just barely.
You have earned the skill Dodge.
You are now harder to hit. You fake left, you fake right, you trip on a rock! Keep working at it, and you could learn to walk a straight line! +5 Exp, +1 Dex